Risk of developing diabetes higher in neighborhoods that aren't walk-friendly

Date:

September 17, 2012

Source:

St. Michael's Hospital

Summary:

Whether your neighborhood is conducive to walking could determine your risk for developing diabetes, according to a new study.

Share:

Total shares:

FULL STORY

Whether your neighbourhood is conducive to walking could determine your risk for developing diabetes, according to a new study by researchers at St. Michael's Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.

Researchers found this risk was particularly high for new immigrants living in low-income neighbourhoods. A new immigrant living in a less walkable neighbourhood -- fewer destinations within a 10-minute walk, lower residential density, poorly connected streets -- was about 50 per cent more likely to develop diabetes when compared to long-term residents living in the most walkable areas, regardless of neighbourhood income.

"Although diabetes can be prevented through physical activity, healthy eating and weight loss, we found the environment in which one lives is also an important indicator for determining risk," said Dr. Gillian Booth, an endocrinologist and researcher at St. Michael's and lead author of the study published online in the journal Diabetes Care September 17.

For new immigrants, environment is an especially important factor as past research has shown an accelerated risk of obesity-related conditions including diabetes within the first 10 years of arrival to Canada, said Dr. Booth, who is also an adjunct scientist at ICES.

While diabetes is on the rise in Canada, the same trends are occurring globally, even in less industrialized countries. This is due in part to the move from rural to urban living in developing countries -- often associated with increased exposure to unhealthy foods, fewer opportunities for physical activity and a heightened risk of becoming obese and developing diabetes.

The study looked at data from the entire population of Toronto aged 30-64 -- more than 1 million people -- and identified those who didn't have diabetes. It then followed them for five years to see if their risk of developing diabetes increased based on where they live.

To determine which neighbourhoods were more conducive to walking, researchers developed an index looking at factors such as population density, street connectivity and the availability of walkable destinations such as retail stores and service within a 10-minute walk.

Dr. Booth said neighbourhoods that were the least walkable were often newly developed areas -- characterized by urban sprawl -- in part because of the reliance on cars caused by suburban design.

"Previous studies have looked at how walkable neighbourhoods affect health behaviour, but this is the first to look at the risk of developing a disease," said Dr. Booth.

Dr. Booth said the results emphasize the importance of neighbourhood design in influencing the health of urban populations.

July 31, 2015  School is just around the corner, which means backpacks and packed lunches await your children. One expert offers tips for parents to promote healthy dental habits while away from ... read more

July 29, 2015  By blocking the expression of a certain gene in patients, researchers have contributed to the demonstration of great decreases in the concentration of triglycerides in their ... read more

July 29, 2015  Viewing aquarium displays led to noticeable reductions in blood pressure and heart rate, a research team found in the first study of its kind. They also noted that higher numbers of fish helped to ... read more

June 17, 2014  People who live in neighborhoods that are conducive to walking experienced a substantially lower rate of obesity, overweight and diabetes than those who lived in more auto-dependent neighborhoods, ... read more

June 12, 2014  Young black adults on dialysis living in poor neighborhoods had a higher risk of dying while still young compared with all other young black and white adults, research shows. Among young adult ... read more

May 4, 2013  As parents, physicians and policymakers look for ways to curb childhood obesity, they may need to look no further than a child's own backyard. A new study shows that preschool children are less ... read more